Extended Season

Anyone hunting the "Extended/Muzzleloader Season" this year?
What County of the "Republic" and what are you using? Sidelock? Underhammer? Inline? Loads etc...???

I have for the last 3 yrs and will again this year. Goliad County and use it for my doe permits in late season(buck if I have not tagged one in archery or general). TC Triumph with 3-50 grain American Pioneer Powder sticks and 250 grain Barnes Spit-fire TMZ.

TYVM for your reply!
How do you like those AP powder sticks? I mean you must if you use them I know but I guess I'm asking are they pretty consistent? I used to use AP powder back when it was called Clean Shot(not to be confused with the now defunct IMR Clear Shot whose plant blew up). That AP/CS powder was the only thing my TC Big Boar .58 would pattern well with. Loved it but did notice it,powder, did like moisture some what and tried to clumped in the flask funnel!
I've Seen Shockleys Gold Sticks...wondered if they were worth trying.
For me I'll be in San Jacinto County,and Using CVA Accura 2-MR Nitride! So far it groups best "1-1.75" at 100yds with .300gr Aerolites over 2 50 grain Pellets of IMR White Hots...(Not sure Ill stay with that the "WH" are really delicate and crumbly)!
Mr .Toby Bridges(NAMLH) seem to really like the Scorpion Harvesters and I see many people and I mean many say they are having good results both on paper and meat with the Barnes! Fun thing about the Muzzleloaders... are the highs and lows and all the formulas till you find its sweetest "flavor"!

The Barnes bullets are outstanding....accurate and GREAT on game. I use them every Jan in Iowa on deer that go 275 -300 pounds live weight. I swear by them.Here are my deer from the last 3 years (170 , 157, 169 Gross B&C)





I have heard that the Shockley Gold Sticks are not all that good (that's what I have been told...velocity varies a lot) I use 3 -50gr White Hots in my TC Prohunter ...works great. I have heard excellent reports on the BuckHorn 209 loose powder. If I ever decided to experiment I would probably start there.

The AP Jim Shockey Gold Sticks have shot good in my ML but not consistently good. It could be me that is causing the inconsistency rather than the powder. They have become difficult to find for me and now am going to switch when I finish the last bottle of sticks.

Almost every serious shooter I know that tried the Shockey Gold had consistency problems...so I would bet it is not you.

Always have!! Bought a muzzleloader before I needed it when I was still a youth. Been muzzleloader hunting for 2 years now with a TC triumph bone collector

Nice Deer TonyinVA,,,guess there is something to the name "Virginia whitetail" after all!

Rick...I wish those were VA deer...if you read the post I said that they were all shot in Iowa. I make that trip every year to hunt the late muzzleloader season since the chance of drawing a tag is high and I have an outfitter that has some excellent property.

I hunt Newton County (deep east Texas). Always extend my season with BP. Waiting for the big one leaves tags unfilled LOL. I hunt with Traditions Pursuit XLT 50 cal. Barnes 250 gr in pushed by 90 grains of Blackhorn 209 with 209 Magnum primers. Had many issues with moisture when using pellets. Blackhorn cured that. Haven't made any kills yet, hopefully this year.

Yeah I skimmed right over the Iowa part...all I seen was those pics of the big Bruisers! They look like cows in Deer suits!!!

Pard &i hunted the Minnesota buck only season with our Kentucky .45's My mom took a doe one of the last years she slug hunted up their over 200# she goes hunting with bro if weather not bad, crossbow... Tony, used ta get laughed at by honters at work about the big deer in Minnesota... Then they never hunted up their...

Nice bucks TonyinVa! We are going to use our mld doe tags in extra ML season., as i shot a buck the week after thanksgiving. I have A old style cva optima with the blackhorn breech plug, and shoot 70 grains by weight of black horn, hornady 250 grain sst ml bullet with the supplied sabot and fed magnum 209 primer. My wife shoots new style optima v2 using 80 grain by weight of blackhorn, blackhorn breech plug, hornady 250 grain sst, federal 209 magnum primer. Her Optima hated 70 grains of blackhorn powder and mine hated the 80 grain load. Played around with different grains of powder until i found the most accuracte load for each rifle. I use the Hornady 250 sst because they are cheap and found everywhere, but our deer are small body, besides our hogs, which can be large. Lavaca county, close to the middle coast. Love shooting those muzzleloaders!

In all our muzzleloaders (two Pro Hunters and one CVA) I have found that 3 50g white hots with a 250gr Barnes or a 250gr Hornady shoot almost identical at 100 yards. So when I just want to shoot the gun or have the kids practice I use the Hornadys and we hunt with the Barnes. That said, there is nothing wrong with the Hornadys on deer size game.... I just know the Barnes are a better bullet so I hunt with those exclusively.

I'll be hunting in the Sam Houston National Forest with my 40 year old Mowrey .50 caliber traditional muzzleloader pushing a .50 caliber round ball with loose powder. I have carried it for three years now and never got a shot, but I keep hoping....
But even if I don't see a deer, it's pretty cool tramping through the woods, hunting the same way my great grandfather did. (Except he didn't have to pay $50 a year for a public lands license and wear Orange. Since I'm an Aggie, Orange is my least favorite color.)

Bwaaaaahhhhaaaaa

Well I'm a Baylor/Red Raider Fan! Ill be in Texas "Orange" too! Maybe Ill bump into out at the SHNF!

This year was not very productive so out comes the old smoke pole. I hunt with a CVA optima loaded with 3-50 grain Pyrodex pellets pushing a 245 grain Power belt aero tipped bullet. They don't expand as well as I'd like, but they are very accurate, and the easiest bullets to load IMO. Killing deer with them is no issue at all.

Same here Deersteaks, haven't even seen a hog. I shoot 50 cal. Optima also, i use 100 gr. Blackthoorn 209 with 195 gr. Powerbelt Aerotip.

Me pard & i were big on the ol style guns fast drawing then got the .44 ball & cap pistals then the .45 Kentucky's for deer hunten... Minnesota had a one day doe tag season & a three day buck only... we used our Kentucky's for buck only... me pard was doing workup north... When three guys walked inta little bar with mountain man atire sat down... they were on a two week mussleloader hunt... one had bearskin coat.. Pard sat & chatted with em.. Tried pudding on a mussy hog hunt on in the Public Hunting Forum section, no takers though... should have put it on here... As pappy says: Keep your head held high & your powder dry.. Safe hunten